THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE STAMENS AND CAR- 
FELS. OF TYPHA LATIFOLIA 
JoHN H. SCHAFFNER. 
(WITH PLATES IV—V1) . 
SiNcE the Typhacez are perhaps to be considered among the 
lowest of the monocotyledons, and show some rather peculiar 
characters in connection with their inflorescence, it seemed 
desirable to study the history of the development of the 
stamens and carpels from the very earliest appearance of these 
organs to their mature condition. Such a study should give 
some hints as to whether the peculiar floral structures are 
to be regarded as primitive or reduced. 
The material used was killed in chrom-acetic acid and in 
Flemming’s fluid, and preserved in 70 per cent. alcohol. The 
paraffin method of imbedding was employed, and the sections 
were stained on the slide. The stains used were anilin-safranin 
and gentian-violet, iron-alum-haematoxylin, and Delafield’s 
haematoxylin. Because of the extremely small size of the cells, 
Typha is not a favorable type for cytological study, and a high 
power is needed to make out even the ordinary cell structures. 
Some difficulty was experienced in imbedding the older stages, 
which was overcome, however, by imbedding rather large pieces 
of the spikes and afterwards cutting away the hard woody 
stems, when sections could be obtained containing a large 
number of stamens or carpels. 
I am indebted to Dr. John M. Coulter for assistance and 
valuable suggestions. 
The Typhacez, as might be expected from their aquatic 
habit, have preserved many of the characteristics which may be 
regarded as primitive. The indefinite number of the flowers 
aang from the Hull Botanical Laboratory, VI. 
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